Token instrument for use on single-line railways or tramways.



w.='s. ROBERTS. TOKEN INSTRUMENT FORUSE 0N SINGLE LINE RA ILWAYS 0R TRAMWAYS I APPLICATION FILED JULY 1, I915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET I- W. S. ROBERTS. TOKEN; INSTRUMENT FOR USE ON'SINGLE LINE RAILWAYS 0R TRAMWAY'S;

APPLICATION min 1uLY1. 1915. 1,234,806. v Patented July 31', 1917.

4 SHEETS,.SHEET 2.

w. s'. ROBERTS. TOKEN INSTRUMENT FOR USE ON SINGLE LINE RAILWAYS 0R TRAMWAYS. APPLICATION FILED JULY 7. I915.

1,234,806; rammed July 31,1917.

. v 4 sums-sum 4;

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WALTER, SYDNEY nonnnrs, or mv'nnrcon, ENGLAND, AssIeNor. T0 RAILWAY storm COMPANY LIMITED, or WESTMINSTER, ENGLAND.

TOKEN INSTRUMENT FOR USE ON SINGLE-LIN E RAILWAYS OR TRAMWAYS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented July 31, 1917.

Application filed July 7, 1915. Serial no. 38, 22;

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WALTER SYDNEY Ronnnrs, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at 17 9 Warbreck Moor,

Aintree, in thecity of Liverpool and .county ,of Lancaster, England, have invented new and useful Improvements in or Connected with TokenInstruments for Use on Single- Line Railways or Tramways, of which the following is a specification.

On sections of single lines of railways, or tramways, which are controlled by token instruments such, for instance, as those with which staffs, or the like, (hereinafter referred to as tokens), are employed and where, occasionally, or generally, the predominance of traffic over the section is in one direction, the number of tokens in the instrument at one end'of the, section increases while the number of tokens olecreases in the corresponding instrument at the other end of the section.

In order to efiect balancing, or adjusting, of the tokens between the two instruments a linesman, or other person, having special authority to obtain access to the interior mechanism of the instruments, and to remove from one instrument the number of tokens required for use with the other instrument, has been employed. This is tedious and costly, especially if the authorized person be stationed at some "distance away, and the number of sections which can be balanced, or adjusted, in a given time is very limited. Moreover, there is the objection that one, or more, of the removed tokens may be mislaicl.

This invention has for its object to overcome these objections, whlch iseffected by providing apparatus which is interlocked so that the balancing, or adjusting, of the tokens can be effected by local operators su ch balancing, ,pensed w1th,wh1le safer means are prov ded for conveying tokens from onev end of the without the services of a linesman, or other specially authorized person, being required, the opening of the casing, mclosmgthe internal mechanism. of the instruments, and c the withdrawal of free tokens for efi'e'cting or adjusting, being dissection to the other.

In order that this invention and how it isto be performed may be well understood companying drawing, a construction in accordance therewith.

Figures 1 and 2 are elevations, at right angles to each other, ofa magazine with its lock and key..

1 Figs. 3 and 4, are elevations, at right angles to each other, of a portion of a token lns'trument with a lock and key attached.

Figs. 5 and 6, are elevations, at right angles to each other, and Fig. 7 is a plan,

The portion of the stafi instrument shown is the column marked 6 and th staffs shown therein are marked 7.

At one side of the column 6, in any suitable position, an aperture is made, as indicated at 1, this aperture being suificiently large to allow the staffs 7 to pass lengthwise through it when an obstruction (such as the bolt, 2, of a lock 3, which I refer to as a lock) is removed. Y opening 5, for a key 15, carried by the magazine 10, which key, when turned in the lock 3, will remove the obstruction 2, from the passage through the aperture 1.

The lock 3, carries a key 4 which passes through the opening 4, to enter the magazine lock 14, at 16, the said key 4, being secured so that it cannot be withdrawn from the lock 3, but so that it can; be passed through the lock 3, and into the magazine position on the instrument column.

8, is a pro ected piece affixed to the instrument column 6, with which piece 8, the

hook 9, carried by the magazine 10,,en-

gages.

10, is a slot in the magazine 10, to accommodate the staffs.

In the magazine 10, is an aperture 11, in a position corresponding to the position of the aperture 1, in the instrument column 6, so that the apertures 1 and 11, coincide when the magazine is applied to the in- In this lock is an I lock 14, when the magazineis placed strument. Similarly to the aperture 1, this aperture 11, is large enough to allow the staffs (indicated at 7 to pass through it when an obstruction, such as the bolt, 13, in

themagazine lock 14, isremoved, this lock 14, having in it, an opening 16, for the key 41, which has to be turned in the lock 14:, to remove the obstruction 13, from the aperture 11. The aforesaid key 15, of the magazine lock is secured so that it cannot be withdrawn from the lock 14, but so that it can be passed through the lock 14, and inserted in the lock 3, when the magazine 10, is placed in position on the staff instru ment.

The obstructions 2, and 13, respectively, can only be removed from the positions in which they obstruct the apertures 1 and 11, respectively, when the magazine is in position on the instrument and the apertures 1 and 11, are in alinement with each other and the opening 5, is in alinenient with the magazine key 15, and the opening 16, is in alinement with the key 4. The magazine key 15, can then be inserted in the lock 3, and turned so as to remove the obstruction 2, and the key 4:, can be inserted in'the magazine lock let, and turned so as to remove the obstruction 13.

hen the obstructions 2 and 13, are thus removed, the staffs can be passed through the apertures 1 and 11, and from the magazine to the instrument column 6, or vice versa.

The magazine 10, cannot be removed from the staff instrument until the keys 1 and 15, are removed from their respective locks 14 and 3, and then the obstructions 2 and 13, necessarily return to their obstructive positions. The partial removal of eitherof the keys 1, 15, from the locks 14: and 3, respectively, will not free the magazine from the staff instrument and only when the keys 4: and 15 are turned in their respective locks 14; and 3, will the magazine be secured to the staff instrument and the obstructions 2 and 13, removed.

The lock'3, and key l, will be alike on the respective staff instruments of the section to which the tokens apply and the magazine 1001114, and magazine key 15, will be of such a pattern as to only work in conjunction with the keys and locks of the said staff instruments.

The locks and keys for instruments and magazines for different sections should not 7 be alike, or irregularities will be liable to occur.

The apparatus described can be operated as follows Should there be a predominance of traffic over a section in one direction it becomes necessary to transfer some of the tokens, (staffs for instance) accumulated in the token instruments at one end, to the token instrument at the other end, of the section. The magazine will then be attached to the token instrument at the end of the section from which it is desired to remove tokens,

and the required number of tokens can then ing necessary to call on a specially 'depute'd person to abstract tokens for balancing purposes.

What I claim is 1. In apparatus of the type described, a

token-'stafi-receiving instrument and a portable token-staff-transfer magazine adapted to be temporarily associated therewith, said instrument and magazine having register- 1 ng apertures in the associated position of y the parts through which token stafi's "may be manually transferred from one to the other.

2. apparatus of the type described, a

token-receiving instrument and a portable token-transfer magazine adapted to be temporarily associated therewith, said in strument and magazine having registering apertures in the associated position. of the parts through which tokens may be transferred from one to the other, obstructions barring each of said apertures andjmeans for displacing said obstructions to permit unimpeded passage of the tokens the-reth'ro'u'gh. V r

3. In apparatus of the type described a token-receiving instrument and a portable token-transfer magazine adapted to be temporarily associated therewith, said instrument and magazine having registering apertures in the associated position of the parts r through which tokens may be transferred from one to the other, obstructions barring said apertures and means carried by said magazine and token instrument respectively for displacing said obstructions, the means carried by the token instrument operating on the obstruction to the aperture in the magazine, and vice Versa.

4. In apparatus of the type described, a

token-receiving instrument and a portable token-transfer magazine adapted to be temporarily associated therewith, said instrument and magazine having registering aper tures in the associated position of the parts through which 'tokens may be transferred from one to the other, obstructions barring said apertures and means carried by said magazine and token instrument respectively In testimony whereof I have signed my for displacing said obstructions, the means name to this specification in the presence of 10 carried bg the token initrument operatiililg two subscribing witnesses.

on the o struction to t e aperture in t e magazine, and vice versa, said means serving 1 WALTER SYDNEY ROBERTS to lock said magazine and token instrument Witnesses:

in associated condition so long as the ob- SYDNEY T. HUYToN,

structionsto said apertures are displaced. STANLEY E. ELLIS.

copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

7 Washington, D. 0. 

